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Birds with bald heads

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ExDancer Fri 06-Sept-24 11:49:52

Early in the year I noticed a magpie coming to my feeder with damaged feathers around its head. I don't like magpies stealing the food from my little birds, but nature is nature and I felt a bit sorry for it thinking it'd been caught in a snare or something and freed itself.
Then I saw a collared dove with similar injuries, and then another.
Just now I've seen another magpie with no feathers at all on his head ...... what's happening?
Is there some new bird disease, or flea infestation going around?

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Redhead56 Fri 06-Sept-24 12:16:10

We have had a magpie who practically lives in our garden and has done a couple of months. It is baldy too I suspected it's because of fights with the wood pigeons. Wood pigeons literally butt other birds in the head I have watched it being done. I assumed that's the cause fighting over territory.

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AreWeThereYet Fri 06-Sept-24 13:10:30

Are they injured or moulting?

We had a bald robin visiting the garden for a while but haven't seen it recently. When I mentioned it to a friend he suggested it was probably moulting.

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ExDancer Fri 06-Sept-24 14:03:09

That's really interesting Redhead, we do have woodpigeons around too. I was imagining some horrible disease like mixamatosis (spelling!) in rabbits. Thank you

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Redhead56 Fri 06-Sept-24 15:08:53

You are welcome if I am right!

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